A year passed after Cloud found Sephiroth hiding beneath the brush, sick and dying from the English epidemic that had decimated the Native American population to almost nothing. Cloud had nursed Sephiroth back to health in secret, and slowly found himself falling for the beautiful man.
Facing a harsh winter and a hellish famine, the entire camp had been prepared for certain death. But the generous Native came to the rescue, using his knowledge of the area and hunting to gather enough sustenance to rescue the entire colony, but most importantly... Cloud.
They spent the rest of the winter shivering together in that tent, but it was easily the happiest time of Cloud's life. Being in love with Sephiroth meant finding out things he never knew about himself and about the world around him.
Mostly the joys of sodomy.
There wasn't as much time for that in the spring, because there was a lot of work to be done building a place called home - or tiyata as Sephiroth referred to it.
Cloud claimed a small, idyllic piece of land just outside of the colony. There was a clean stream, plenty of fruit trees and nice soil quality. Sephiroth had shown him the native trick of painting honey and oats on the bark of trees to attract wildlife onto their property, and soon it was a thriving place full of deer, rabbits, bees and birds.
Cloud and Sephiroth could stay there as long as they lived, and never want for anything. And as long as Sephiroth was nearby, Cloud wouldn't ever feel any lack.
Plans for construction had been drawn up on their permanent home, which would someday be the house of Cloud's dreams. But he needed money, tools and supplies to make it happen, which would take a little bit of time gathering, and setting up their small farm to generate some funds. He hoped to be able to sleep under a solid roof in three years' time, but in the meantime they resided in a small cabin.
Beyond a front door and a window, there wasn't much to the place. There was the main room which contained their bed, a fireplace, and a table with two chairs that Cloud had very proudly made all by himself. There was a second, smaller room that held their washing basin and bucket, and space for supplies. It was a very simple dwelling, but incredibly comfortable and cool during the days of their first humid, rainy summer together.
Spending the nightly thunder storms in front of a fire with Sephiroth was more romantic than anything he'd ever experienced before. Teaching each other words, playing games, and reveling in the freedom of expressing physical love as loudly as they wanted to... Cloud never wanted that warm, sticky summer to end.
But eventually it faded to autumn, and memories of the previous winter filled Cloud with dread. Oddly, it become unseasonably warm in October as a small heat wave descended on the colony. Cloud figured it was the calm before the frozen storm that winter would bring, and it was nice to have a little extra time to make final preparations.
He had spent the warm morning chopping extra firewood, of which there could never be too much. It was sweaty work, but what they didn't need would be handy to share and trade with their neighbors in the coming months.
Cloud stacked his armload of wood, and then lazily trotted into the cabin for a fresh tin of water. Before he could bring it to his lips, he spilled the entire thing down the front of himself with a gasp.
Sephiroth was standing there completely naked.
Cloud's shock wasn't due to the nudity, as he'd seen Sephiroth's body hundreds of times by now. The shocking part was that Sephiroth was standing in front of the open window, clearly trying to catch a faint breeze with his groin.
"Yah," Sephiroth greeted mildly.
"What are you doing?" Cloud cried, rushing over to close the shutters, but not before peeking around to ensure the entire world hadn't seen his lover in his naked glory. There weren't even any other dwellings for a quarter of a mile, but the possibility was enough to make Cloud red up to his ears.
It wasn't difficult to miss the sight of a towering, naked, utterly gorgeous Native American. Besides that, the colony knew Cloud and Sephiroth lived together, but the finer details of their relationship were totally secret.
Homosexuality was a grave sin. Cloud had experienced such a sharp lack of love in his life that he gladly embraced a lifestyle of sodomy, although he'd never even considered it before kissing Sephiroth for the first time. Sephiroth had become everything to him, and he wasn't going to let anything happen to him in this life, especially not a public execution.
Cloud had no way of knowing that homosexuality was embraced in Sephiroth's culture as a natural form of love. Sephiroth would have the words to tell him someday and calm his fears, but not for a couple of years.
Until then, Cloud would be convinced that they were Hell bound for the way they felt for each other, let alone the things they did together... but in his heart, it felt like the purest thing in the world. It was still essential to hide it though, as beautiful as it was.
"Get away from the window!" Cloud ordered, shoving Sephiroth aside with his hip as he forced the shutters closed.
"Bunny," Sephiroth complained, elongating the word like an annoyed child as he attempted to pull the shutters back open.
"You have to keep your clothes on, Sephiroth!" Cloud commanded, quickly finding them discarded across the room. He was picking up on Sephiroth's language as quickly as the native was learning English, and scolded him sharply. "Ohan! Sicha! Pants!"
Sephiroth made a hissing sound, glaring down at Cloud. He didn't appreciate being yelled at, and the way Cloud did it was extremely offensive to his ego. There had been a time not too long ago when he would have scalped any man for daring to raise their voice to him. Warriors of the Shin-Ra people were never spoken to that way, especially not by damn white people. But his rosy-cheeked, fair skinned little lover found it natural to order him around, and had bossed him and mothered him from the first moments of their meeting.
His adoration for Cloud made him do things he would never have done for any boy or woman in his tribe. But Sephiroth supposed that most men were reduced to slaves for their lovers, and with wounded pride the great warrior finally conceded. "... Pants."
"Hoppo, Sephiroth. Stockings on first," Cloud knelt down and held out the clothes like he was dressing a toddler. In a lot of ways, Sephiroth was a toddler. He didn't want to wear clothes; he'd had to go through potty training and taking proper baths with soap, not to mention the much longer process of learning the English language. But Sephiroth was a capable, strong warrior whom Cloud loved with all his heart. It was difficult to maintain patience at times, though, because these seemed like things that grown men should just know.
The native rolled his eyes and stepped into the thin white leggings, and then obediently stepped into his dreaded English trousers. Cloud blushed again as he buttoned them at the waist... the way they clung to the native's toned body was delicious. Trying to get Sephiroth to keep a shirt on was even harder than the trousers, so Cloud didn't bother... not when it would only hide that sculpted, dark skinned torso.
"Pita mila," Cloud thanked him, coming up from his knees. He put his hands on Sephiroth's waist, rubbing him affectionately. "Feel okay?"
Sephiroth spoke at length, sounding nothing like the spiteful brat he did when he tried to speak English. He motioned to his waist and pulled at the material, then motioned to the air all around them. Finally, after a pause he frowned, "Fire."
Cloud shrugged.
"Fire," Sephiroth repeated, fanning his face and giving a theatrical huff.
"Are you warm, Sephiroth?" Cloud finally asked, clapping his hands in realization. He joined his lover in pantomiming heat exhaustion, and pulled his collar to demonstrate. "Ugh, warm!"
"Warm."
"Good!" Cloud smiled, then praised him in his native tongue, "Ai!"
"Ahan!" Sephiroth grinned back, and victoriously began to take his pants back off.
"No!" Cloud cried with helpless laughter, clasping his hands over Sephiroth's. "Even if it's warm outside, you still have to keep your pants on!"
Sephiroth frowned, tugging at his waistband. The childish tugging made them creep down the taut lines of his hips, even revealing a splash of pretty silver pubic hair. He seemed to notice the shift of Cloud's gaze, and pushed them down until he was completely exposed. "... No?"
Cloud swallowed with a reluctant nod. "Ai, then... no pants. But the shutters stay closed if you insist on going nude!"
Sephiroth was rid of the starchy fabric trousers in moments. Instead of standing by the open window, he laid in their bed with a relieved sigh. He spread himself to the four corners of the feather-filled mattress, shameless in a way that Cloud had never seen in any human being behave before in his life.
With a smile Cloud wiped his forehead on the sleeve of his shirt, and turned to finish to his work outside. But before he could exit the cabin, long arms roped him in against a sweat slick, bare chest.
He turned to Sephiroth in surprise, and squeaked when his fingers began to undo the fastening on his clothes. "What are you up to?"
"No," Sephiroth said softly, and pushed off Cloud's coat and suspenders with determination. He unsnapped the button of his underclothes and bunched them down around his waist. "Warm."
Cloud had to admit that his exposed skin felt heavenly. But going around without a shirt on?... It wasn't really done in the colony. "... Thank you, Sephiroth. But I'm going to keep it on."
"No?" Sephiroth frowned.
"It's proper," Cloud told him helplessly. He didn't know how to explain it in simpler terms. "Proper to wear clothes. Naked... Naked is sicha. Bad."
"No..." Sephiroth shook his head sadly, firmly wiping the sweat off of Cloud's cheeks and forehead, and wiping it onto his own chest. Something about that action was so primal and caring, that Cloud was enchanted. He let Sephiroth close the door and pull him by the hand towards the bed.
Cloud struggled against the coaxing tug, but not very earnestly. "Sephiroth... I have work to do, I can't lie around naked all day with you... as much as I'd like to..."
He sank down onto their mattress, and allowed Sephiroth to pull his boots off. Sephiroth then leaned over the side of the bed, digging around in his hip bag and coming back with a walnut shell that was stuffed with some sort of jelly-like liquid.
Sephiroth spoke kindly to him, and dabbed a bit of the jelly on Cloud's temples, his throat, beneath his nose and on his wrists. It was some sort of strong mint mixture, and it immediately began to cool Cloud's skin. The tiny wet points on his skin felt like melting ice.
Cloud closed his eyes, immediately relaxed and comfortable in the darkness and cool shade of the cabin.
Seeing how well Cloud responded to his mint remedy, Sephiroth then took a little more of the liquid and spread it onto his lips. Cool kisses made their way across Cloud's cheeks and over the bump of his throat. Sephiroth kissed his way down Cloud's stomach, only to replace his cool lips with a hot tongue along the edge of his pants.
Cloud's hips jerked up, and he whined a little. "No... I have work to finish."
Sephiroth whispered between dipping his tongue past the band of Cloud's pants, trying to indicate that he enjoyed the taste of Cloud's sweaty skin, especially at the heavier, bristly texture of his pubic hair. His hands slid up Cloud's thigh, and firmly cupped the crotch of his pants. One tender squeeze was enough to make Cloud's body snap up against Sephiroth's palm.
Cloud stared down, loving the sight of Sephiroth crouched like a tiger between his legs. He spread them even wider, and shivered as the native leaned down over him, pressing himself against Cloud's core. He could clearly feel that Sephiroth was aroused by their closeness, and the shine of dewy sweat clinging to his limbs and chest was nearly enough to make Cloud weep.
But he'd left a mess in front of the cabin, he was nowhere near finished chopping the wood. Anyone passing by would be alarmed, especially if they heard him crying out in pleasure from inside. Only after nightfall were they safe from concerned neighbors. "Sephiroth... Not now. Tonight, later tonight. Please..."
"Love you. Make love you. Have sex you. Inside you..." Sephiroth spoke the disjointed and simple words like seductive poetry, his fine eyebrows lifting as his sharp eyes narrowed. Things concerning this act were his favorite vocabulary words to learn, recite, and commit to memory. "... Fuck you."
Cloud rubbed his eyes with both palms in frustration. Try as he might to teach his lover proper and polite speaking skills, some crass individuals in the colony thought it was funny to have the native parrot lewd phrases. And for whatever reason, the man loved these phrases most of all. "... When I find out who taught you that bloody word..."
"Fuck you," Sephiroth repeated, clearly enjoying the effect it had on Cloud. He pressed his mouth to Cloud's, and then began naming the parts of his lover's body between cool, tender kisses. "Bunny lip... Bunny neck ... Bunny chest ..."
"That's right..." Cloud sighed, arching up slightly.
Sephiroth paused at his nipples, which he could never quite remember the name for. He looked up uncertainly. "Button."
"No... Nipple," Cloud corrected with a blush, and let out a small gasp when Sephiroth gave them both a gentle pull of his teeth.
"Nip-puh," Sephiroth tried, and gave them each another wet flick of his tongue. He continued on his path, his lips finally warming beneath the layer of cool gel. "... Bunny stomach... Bunny hips... Bunny prick."
Cloud sighed loudly, half because Sephiroth's mouth was sucking him through his trousers, and half because he was trying to rinse his vocabulary of that godforsaken word. "Penis, Sephiroth! That's proper!"
"Penis," Sephiroth corrected himself, lapping at it with his tongue while gazing up smugly. "Suck."
Cloud immediately blushed. "That's... that's what you do to it... It's not the name for anything."
"What you do."
"What you do," Cloud confirmed.
"Lick," Sephiroth said softly, sticking his tongue out to roll it against the rigid curve of Cloud's arousal through his pants.
"Ai," Cloud batted his lashes, moving his hips up against Sephiroth's tongue. "... Bite."
Sephiroth responded by nibbling the hardness straining against the black fabric and pulling the starchy cotton away with his teeth to let it snap back. He arched slightly, hovering heavily between Cloud's thighs.
"Yes," Cloud let his head fall back, and his hands began to pull at his pants. He forgot all about propriety, because he was in his own fucking home with his own fucking man and those full, soft lips felt too good to resist. His cock sprang up, eager to be near Sephiroth's wet mouth. "Please..."
"Please..." Sephiroth repeated thoughtfully, and moved to suck the tender flesh of Cloud's exposed upper thigh between his teeth, gnawing it over as Cloud lurched beneath him. Then as suddenly as he'd bitten his thighs, he took Cloud's cock down his hot throat in one pass. He swallowed noisily around it, tugging at the base with tightly sealed lips.
"S-Sephiroth! Mmn!" Cloud reached down and fisted the native's silver hair, pulling hard until he released the flesh with a string of saliva falling against his chin.
Sephiroth nodded with a wolfish smile and he opened his mouth to speak again, but was interrupted by the last sound either of them wanted to hear: a firm, slightly impatient knock on the door.
Cloud was silent for several seconds, staring at his lover in pure disbelief. It was only when the door jiggled that Cloud flew from their bed to ensure that it was bolted. To his immense relief, it was.
"One moment!" Cloud screeched, tucking himself back into his pants and fumbling around to get his shirt back on. He spun around in circles in an attempt to get his arms through the proper holes, and then shoved his feet back into his boots, nearly sobbing with frustration.
Sephiroth sat on the bed, disappointed and dumbfounded. In his culture, if the tent flap was closed, a visitor didn't even bother approaching. This "proper" made Cloud's people act like complete fools; what else would two grown men who lived together be doing with the door closed and locked?
Even if they weren't having sex, they obviously desired privacy. Sephiroth decided to probe Cloud's language that night in search of the best and most direct way to say, 'Piss off'.
There was yet another gentle knock, and Cloud decided it was too late to make the native presentable. He forced Sephiroth's head down against the pillow and threw their blanket over his body. "Stay! Stay right here! Do not move!"
Sephiroth snatched Cloud's wrist and squeezed, snarling angry words. Apparently man handling a cock blocked native wasn't acceptable boyfriend behavior, but Cloud was too frantic to care.
He silenced Sephiroth's hissing words with a tender, pleasing kiss. "Just lie here! Quiet! Sleep!"
Sephiroth rolled over, thoroughly annoyed. Cloud straightened his clothes again before wasting no more time, and threw open the door. "Hello!"
Outside was one of his neighbors, a very Irish young man named Reno. "Hello, Mr. Strife! Just wandering by and thought I'd pop in! All the shutters are closed and I didn't see you outside, I was hoping you were doing alright."
"We're fine! Totally fine!" Cloud laughed, probably a bit too loudly. "Sephiroth does his hunting and chores at night, so he usually is still sleeping at this time of day! I was trying to give him some peace!"
"Well don't mind me for worrying over you, Mr. Strife. And don't you feel for a moment that you'll be alone this winter! I'm going to keep a path cleared from my house to yours, you and Sephiroth will never be isolated, no sir! I'll do me best to come and visit you two every day!"
Cloud's right eyelid began to twitch involuntarily. "Well... I... uh, thank you?"
Reno popped his head inside the door, and used the greeting that the entire colony had learned to acknowledge Sephiroth with, "Kola, Sephiroth!"
Sephiroth began speaking in a manner that definitely wasn't friendly. He grumpily kicked off most of the quilt, leaving his entire torso and one leg exposed. It was suddenly very obvious that there was only one bed in the cabin, and that Sephiroth took up most of it.
"He's still sleeping," Cloud swallowed nervously, moving to block Reno's view.
"Well I'll see you two later! Enjoy this heat while it lasts!" And with a very subtle glance back at Sephiroth, Reno left.
Cloud quickly closed the door, bolted it, and flew back into bed. He clung to Sephiroth, worry and embarrassment making him clamp his eyes shut. Eventually he sighed, "I guess it's not so bad, having... a friendly neighbor. But if he suspects - "
"Sex?" Sephiroth interjected.
"Suspects," Cloud repeated grimly. "If he suspects us... he might try to do something about it..."
"... Sex," Was all Sephiroth heard as he rolled Cloud over onto his back.
Cloud had to chuckle at his lover's brilliant, but one-track mind. "What's got you like this, Seph?"
Instead of forming an answer, Sephiroth licked the side of Cloud's neck. The truth was that Cloud's scent, his sweat, and the sight of moisture sitting on his sun kissed skin was utterly sensual to the native. The complexion of his own people was very different from that of an Englishman. To Sephiroth, a red blush was provocative; hard work outside and intense sex inside made Cloud appear the same way.
Any discomfort he'd felt at Reno's visit dissipated, and Cloud assisted in shedding his clothes for a second time that afternoon. He was quick to kick his pants off and lift his legs, spreading himself open, showing the native whatever he wanted to see.
Sephiroth didn't hesitate to push a single digit into Cloud. He cried out at the sudden entry, and the sound elongated as Sephiroth's finger moved in deep only to pull back out slowly. Cloud loved watching the intense expression of concentration on Sephiroth's face as his fingers disappeared inside him. The expression lifted into fascination as Cloud began to move his hips slowly, meeting his finger at the deepest point and trying to get more.
Making love in the middle of the day made Cloud feel indulgent, but that was the point. It was so easy to forget about sin and Hell and propriety when Sephiroth was touching him. This beautiful man had saved his life, and Cloud was determined to love him without religious or societal guilt hanging over his head. He'd crossed an ocean to escape that kind of loneliness and find his true home, so he'd enjoy every moment.
Cloud shifted to reach for Sephiroth's cock, which was moist and hard against his thigh. He reached underneath to lift his balls, enjoying the weight of them as he felt his fingers increase speed.
There were a lot of things they could use as lubricant, but Cloud enjoyed what their bodies made naturally. He craned his neck to reach Sephiroth's cock, letting it fill his mouth and press against the back of his throat.
Sephiroth pulled his fingers out and spat into his palm, and slapped it against Cloud's spread open ass before pushing his fingers back in deep. The sharp sting against his most sensitive spot made Cloud's cock jump against his stomach.
Cloud loved sucking Sephiroth's big cock, and enjoying a few more passes with tightened lips before pulling his mouth away. He had a good sense of what his native liked, and slowly turned over onto his stomach and lifted his hips, presenting his ass with a curved arch.
It took a measure of shameless desire that Cloud never knew he possessed before being with Sephiroth. For the love of this man, Cloud would be willing to try pretty much anything. The upside was that he liked it, too. He liked how much Sephiroth wanted him, he liked how freeing it was to bend over and look behind himself to watch his lover mount him like an animal.
Sephiroth's long hair stuck to his damp body, and his strong fingers dug into Cloud's hips as he pulled him into place. He brushed his cock against Cloud's ass, teasing the tight puckered knot of skin, just to watch Cloud's spine arch in ticklishness. His pretty ass tightened up hard before relaxing open, just enough to let the head of Sephiroth's cock push inside.
He laid a hand on Cloud's shoulder, anchoring himself to fuck his lover hard. It was expected by now, but still a shocking sensation to feel a hard, warm cock rubbing against his innermost core. Sephiroth groaned freely against the back of Cloud's head, his mouth closing to press kisses against his blonde, bouncing spikes.
"Talk," Cloud urged, reaching back to run his hands over Sephiroth's thighs. "Talk to me..."
Sephiroth spoke in his own language against Cloud's neck. For this particular occasion, Sephiroth set into a monologue about the first time he masturbated in Cloud's tent in the colony, jerking his cock desperately with a pair of Cloud's dirty stockings pressed against his nose. He'd watched Cloud get dressed every single morning, and it always left him aching to run his mouth over his lithe, fair skinned body.
Sephiroth wasn't sure if Cloud would slap him in the face or be flattered if he knew what he was saying. But the dirty cadence lent itself to the act of making love to the boy of his dreams, and Cloud reveled in being utterly adored by Sephiroth.
They could make this last all day if they wanted, but they both had work to do. And the night would stretch out for twelve lovely hours together in the glow of the lamp.
Cloud was gasping for air as his lover's hips hit the softness of his ass, forcing a hard slapping sound to resonate through their cabin. "Sephiroth! That's... so... good!"
"Ai," He agreed, his hands greedy as they dug across firm, sweaty muscle and wrapped around Cloud's moisture coated erection. Precome was drooling as Sephiroth hit against his ass, and it only took a few strokes of his fist before Cloud was tensing towards release.
"Seph, I'm going..." Cloud told him, holding his ass in place for his lover's cock and trying not to squirm away from the intense pleasure. His lover's gruff breath against his hair, and the sight and feel of his tattooed arm wrapped tight around his chest put Cloud off to the brink.
What pushed them both over the edge was a misfire. Sephiroth pushed in hard before losing balance on one knee, and the sudden stab of pressure at that peculiar angle forced the climax out of Cloud in a strained jet of semen. Sephiroth was jerked along by the reality of his partner's sudden orgasm, and the tight clamp of his ass milked it all from him.
Cloud was giggling against the bed before Sephiroth was done shuddering through his aftershocks, and with a grunt he pulled his sensitive cock out. He joined in with a satisfied chuckle, lying beside Cloud while covering the side of his face in soft kisses.
"That was... nice," Cloud purred, not moving.
"Nice," Sephiroth agreed lazily. "... Nice sex."
Cloud gave an embarrassed giggle. It was wonderful to have a lover so willing to state the obvious. "Yeah, nice sex."
"Nice ass," Sephiroth commented, admiring the way the soft mound of each white asscheek fit into his hand in turn.
"You too," Cloud agreed, lifting his leg to brush his foot over the firm curve that the native possessed.
"Nice leg... nice back... nice penis," Sephiroth ran through every body part he could think of the name for.
"Hey Seph?" Cloud called sleepily.
"Hm?"
"You have a nice prick."
"Aha!" Sephiroth gloated triumphantly. "Bunny not proper!"
"That's becoming more obvious every day," Cloud grinned against his pillow.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
The heat wave departed as quickly as it had come.
Sephiroth took it upon himself to seal up their window for the winter, packing mud into any cracks between the wooden planks of their cabin. Initially Cloud didn't like the idea of mud in his home, but the stuff dried to a clean, smooth texture, and actually smelled quite nice.
Their small shed was stuffed with supplies for the winter, and eventually the time came to keep their front door closed unless it was in use.
Cabin fever was never an issue with Cloud. He liked being indoors, bundled up against the cold, especially alongside such a tender lover. Sephiroth seemed to painstakingly ensure that Cloud was always toasty warm whenever he came back in from outside. The cold didn't seem to bother Sephiroth at all.
Outside was a perfect, smooth blanket of knee-high snow... except for the path that their neighbor Reno kept clear to their cabin. Cloud didn't understand where the redhead's concern stemmed from, because Sephiroth had proven himself to be a trusted ally of the entire colony. Unless... the redhead knew something about their secret relationship that he shouldn't.
Or maybe he was just lonely himself. Reno came daily, often with a flask of liquor to share.
He asked a lot of questions about Sephiroth, his language, and his people. Cloud found that having another person around to coach Sephiroth in English was a real help. He even brought them a child's lap-board and some chalk, and began to teach Sephiroth the alphabet, and how to write his name... Cloud felt a little guilty that he hadn't even considered trying to teach Sephiroth actual fundamentals.
Soon, Sephiroth was speaking more clearly than ever, if in a slight Irish accent.
Cloud also liked having a few moments in the day to himself, often leaving Sephiroth in Reno's company to do odd outside chores or to just take a dump in private. Eventually Cloud and Sephiroth looked forward to Reno's visits, finding friendship in the excitable young Irishman.
Things changed in November. Reno's visits were much shorter, and sometimes he'd skip days. Then a day without the redhead turned into several, and Cloud became worried.
"Sephiroth, we should go see Reno today," Cloud said, standing up from the table to clear their breakfast dishes. "Just to check on him."
"Check on him," Sephiroth parroted, having no idea what he was saying but agreeing whole heartedly.
"Walk to Reno's tiyata," Cloud said clearly, then gave a vivid shrug of his shoulders to indicate his uncertainty. "He hasn't come over. I wonder why?"
Sephiroth's eyes took on an intelligent understanding, and he nodded again as he took his time composing his sentence. "Walk to Reno's house."
Cloud leaned down to pinch Sephiroth's cheek tenderly. "I really can't wait to talk with you..."
All Sephiroth understood was Cloud's closeness and the warmth of his smile. He craned his neck to reach Cloud's lips, but the kiss was brief. Cloud pulled away to put the dishes and leftover food away, and Sephiroth dressed himself warmly before snuffing their fire. It was much less of a challenge to get the Native into clothes when there was three feet of snow outside.
They walked hand in hand to Reno's cabin. It wasn't such an odd thing to do in public, considering there were deep patches of snow that sometimes swallowed Cloud's legs up to his knees. Sephiroth easily avoided these spots, but would tighten his grip on Cloud's hand and pull him out, laughing at the ridiculousness of his Bunny.
Reno's cabin seemed undisturbed. There was smoke misting up from his chimney, and there seemed to be light flickering from inside. Cloud let go of Sephiroth's hand and approached slowly, listening for any sign of trouble from within.
After a moment, Cloud knocked patiently. There was movement inside so he took a step back from the door, shrugging up at Sephiroth. The door opened only a crack, and a red faced and very sweaty Reno peered out, "... Oh, Mr. Strife! Hello! I'm very sorry I haven't been over to see you, I've come down with something terrible!"
Cloud frowned. "You could have come to stay with us if you're sick, Reno. We'd be happy to take care of you... is there anything you need?"
"Not at all! I'm fine! It'll clear up on its own, I'm drinking plenty of whisky - !" Reno gulped as another voice came rumbling from within the cabin.
The voice wasn't speaking English.
Before Cloud could react, Sephiroth had shoved his way past Reno and into his home, shouting happily at the top of his lungs.
The scene was awfully familiar: a roaring fire, clothes strewn everywhere, and two naked men, one of which was a beautiful Native. Only this time it was Reno's home, and he was left cowering behind the door, looking humiliated.
Sephiroth heeded no mind to the nudity of the other Native; he was crying out in excitement and hugging him. The other Native seemed to be just as pleased to see Sephiroth, and returned his embrace whole heartedly and chattering back to him.
Cloud was baffled. "... What? Who is...?"
Reno yanked him inside the cabin, slamming the door while quickly covering his groin with his discarded pants. "Sh! Nobody... nobody knows he's here."
"Who is that?" Cloud asked, becoming almost jealous at the way Sephiroth was chatting excitedly with this strange naked man.
"I think he's called Rude... but I'm not sure," Reno confessed. "We... we met each other about a month ago. Just out hunting... I let him stay with me and one thing led to another..."
"Why didn't you tell us?"
"Well uh... I didn't know how," Reno grimaced and twisted his fingers in shame. "I can't really get Rude to keep any clothes on. And he hates the snow so he won't leave. And we just kind of started this... relationship? I'm sorry I didn't tell you, I'm still a bit overwhelmed."
"It's okay, Reno..." Cloud took a deep breath. "Sephiroth and I are lovers, too."
"I know that," Reno snorted. "Everyone does. You're both really loud when you go at each other."
Cloud blushed, and let his eyes fall to the floor as Reno tried to dress himself without giving him an eyeful. "So... um. It seems like you and your new uh, friend are getting along well. Sephiroth and I were just wondering why you hadn't been over this week. Now it's very apparent, so we'll go - "
"Sephiroth seems to know him, so take him with you! He's driving me crazy! He repeats himself a million times and... I get so fucking frustrated. Seems like fucking is the only time when we know what each other is talking about..." Reno frowned. "But I like the guy... I guess I wish I could communicate with him the way you and Sephiroth can."
"I've been with Sephiroth for almost a year! We have work every day at communication!" Cloud cried. "You have to at least give the man a chance to - "
Cloud was cut off by Sephiroth grabbing his arm and bringing him closer to the still very naked and slightly aroused Rude. Cloud forced himself not to look below the man's chin, but it was extremely difficult. Especially when he was so stoic, serious and handsome from the neck up. Not letting his eyes have a peek down was a hard workout in self-control.
Sephiroth then took Cloud's face in his hands, and gave him a breathless kiss, "Bunny... Rude. My friend."
Cloud was moved by the excitement in Sephiroth's eyes, and knew what he expected of him. Sephiroth had opened the door for hugging in the colony, as it was his greeting when first meeting anyone. As Sephiroth's lover, it would have been rude not to honor naked, half boner Rude with a ... hug.
Before he could become too nervous and English about it, he moved forward to wrap his arms around Rude's waist in a demonstration of good will. After a long pause, he felt the man's large hand rub his back, and a sharp chin press against the top of his head. And although he could feel Rude's cock pressed against his stomach, it was a rather nice feeling to meet someone from Sephiroth's culture as a friend, and not as an invader.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"It's going to be snowing tonight. Bunny gets cold," Sephiroth commented. He was getting better at stringing together sentences, and practiced by commenting on everything as he saw it. His child-like observations were simple, but there was constant improvement.
"I'm fine Seph," Cloud gripped Sephiroth's arm tighter with his free hand. "We'll be there soon. You can kiss me and warm me up."
"Kiss," Sephiroth leaned down and bumped his lips into Cloud's. He opened his mouth and treated Cloud to a luxurious taste of wet warmth in the middle of the still, frozen forest.
Cloud smiled up at him, "My rolls are getting cold."
"Rolls cold?" Sephiroth wondered, bending his knee so that it pressed against Cloud's groin.
"Rolls! Not balls... never mind, just come on."
Reno and Rude's cabin was covered in snow and would have blended in with the late afternoon background seamlessly if it weren't for the crack of light around the edge of their door. Cloud let himself in, and dropped the load he was carrying on the table with a relieved sigh.
Reno was stirring a pot of blackberry sauce on the fire, and Rude was peeling potatoes. Sephiroth had brought over a very large turkey he'd caught a few nights prior, and Cloud had the bundle of yeast rolls he'd made, which were still warm even after their trek through the snow.
There was no real occasion for the feast. But it was almost winter, the days were short and the nights felt endless. With nothing else to do but travel to each other's small dwellings, a party seemed well in order.
Besides, Reno had a stockpile of booze behind the cabin and luckily for all of them, alcohol didn't freeze.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
A/N
1 – I wrote this one in 2011, and decided it could use a nasty sex scene in the updated version. For some not-quite-as-embarrassing old art, there's a link below.
Owmyhearteries dot deviantart dot com / art / HappyThanksgiving-2011-270630795
